Today is Ash Wednesday. [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3L3c23MfC0?rel=0] More than 70 Episcopal parishes in 18 states will bring Ash Wednesday to the streets, kicking off the Lenten season with a twist.They’ll offer the Christian sign of repentance — a smudged cross of ashes...
Dancing Naked Before...
posted by Bradford Pugh
Wednesday is the start of the Lenten Season. The tough part of Lent for some is the “giving something up” part. Today at GracePointe we heard that this season, we may see and hear some minimalist messages and worship. The intent is to turn our hearts and reflections toward the God...
Censoring Jesus
posted by Clint Ribble
It was beautiful, the ever-changing vistas, the cool breeze, the very unexpected sunshine. It was a place that was instantly recognized as sacred. A holy place, made all the more transcendent because of whom I experienced it with. It was Ireland, and we were on a four-course, five-day golf marathon. It was exhilaratingly brutal. I won’t forget when my brother stepped up to the tee-box and crushed the ball with a near-perfect slice that was caught by the wind, exacerbating the ball’s problematic trajectory. It was lost. A curse rang out. The phrase wasn’t lost in the breeze that took the ball. It was clear. My father looked...
The Six-fingered Man
posted by Aaron Manes
The most famous swordfight I know about is Inigo Montoya and the six-fingered man in “The Princess Bride.” Remember how in the Baz Luhrmann remake of “Romeo and Juliet” the swords were guns? I always thought that was a cool twist. Swords don’t make much sense any more. Last...
The Hands and Feet ....
posted by Shari Lacy
He’s seventeen. I’ve known about him for quite some time. I sit on an HOA board in our neighborhood and have been painfully aware of the trouble he’s gotten himself into over the years. It’s been no secret to a select few of us that this boy has not had an easy life. A perfect...
A Life Less Ordinary
posted by Shari Lacy
I’m a quote person. I relish in them. Biblical ones. Inspirational ones. Funny ones. Thought provoking ones. Quotes that make me pause, contemplate, cry, laugh, think…I have journals and journals of them. As a freelance writer, I work them into my pieces, I use them on handmade...
Dirty Hands
posted by Steve Wyer
Four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child,...
Welcome to Your Plac...
posted by Melissa Greene
What if there really was a place at the table for everyone? An equal place…What if we really welcomed everyone who sat? What if we saw worth in everyone who sat here? What if we valued their opinion or what if we simply just vowed to listen, to hear their story, their life? What if...
The value of community.
posted by Brandi Manes
I was sitting on a bench in downtown Nashville during a laser tag lock-in. I had just rolled my ankle by trying to run backwards up a ramp and was trying to sooth my injuries with mass quantities of Dr. Pepper. Not generally the kind of moment you think will change your life. Then my pastor sat down next to me and asked, “Sooo… how attached are you to your job?” They wanted a youth pastor. I loved teenagers but had no real ministry experience of any kind. We decided to give it a go. I was terrified. TERRIFIED. I had no idea what I was doing. How do you teach Sunday school? How do you find good adult leaders? What kind of...