Author Archive
I had the opportunity to talk to the music ministry volunteers at Eastview this Friday. Below is the manuscript and slides from my talk about the multi-layered worship experience of music.
CS Lewis in an Essay called “Meditation in a Toolshed” talks about two different ways to look at things. He tells the story of walking [...]
I had the opportunity to speak on the Feeding of the Five Thousand this Wednesday at the Focus service. I’d certainly do some delivery things different, but I enjoyed the process. Below is my manuscript.
Introduction
Mankind is a hungry being. We come into the world hungry. I wake up almost every morning hungry. In the middle [...]
Yes, I grew a beard in conjunction with Lent. I’ve avoided answering the questions 1) why are you growing a beard 2) when are you going to shave and 3) have you given up shaving for Lent. In part, because it’s hard (for me) to explain without getting mired down in a discussion about [...]
This morning I read a section of a really old sermon (it’s part of the daily office reading for the day) that reminded me of my favorite icon (both the quote and the icon are below). I love the theological reflection through creative narrative in this piece, and I love how the icon focuses that [...]
I’m always amused at how “rigid” structures like the liturgical year flex to fit the times. Below is a prayer from Henri Nouwen that was included in a collection of reflections on Lent for this past Sunday. A solid request no matter what side of the aisle you’re on.
“Let me retain innocence and simplicity in [...]
Each year I take a group of six students up to the Monastery of the Holy Cross in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood to spend time in fixed hour prayer, silence, retreat, and service. The monastic community at Holy Cross is always extremely gracious to us and I enjoy the opportunity to expose students to spiritual formation [...]
Last year, at this point in the summer, I was in western Nebraska deep into chapter 2 of my doctoral thesis. One year later, the degree is complete and I’m back in western Nebraska for a little rest and a family visit.
It’s left me a little time to to think about the question everyone [...]
I had the opportunity to talk about the intersection of Public Worship and Spirituality at Lakeside Christian Church during their Worship Ministry Retreat this Saturday. No need to reinvent the wheel on this one, so I simply synthesized Robert Webber’s Divine Embrace and Brian McLaren’s material on story. Here is the audio/slides (iTunes Enhanced Podcast) [...]
Ira Glass (one of my favorite modern media storytellers) has a few short snippets up about creating good stories. Good stuff.
Krista and hannah arrived last night, so now it’s on to vacation! 4th of July parade and fireworks today in the big city of Oshkosh, NE; then on to Denver and Scottsbluff for a while.