Living the Lectionary

John 3:1-17 The truth of “God so loved the world…” is diminished if we add conditional clauses that limit the ability of the wind of the S...

Romans 8:12-17 I will admit I’m in hock to the flesh and cannot conceive a payment plan that will get me out of debt anytime soon. Based o...

Psalm 29 Hills skipping and mountains bucking are not that pleasant when one is in close proximity. In the same way we prefer our forests ...

Isaiah 6:1-8 The call story of the prophet Isaiah is filled with fanciful details that defy explanation. The hem of the Lord “high and lif...

John 16:1-15 The Spirit as Advocate contends for us to prove the world’s ways will not be the way for us. That is because the Spirit convi...

Romans 8:22-27 When inward groaning anticipates the cry of new birth the joy anticipated is the hope that endures. Even in our weakness, w...

Psalm 104:24-35 Psalm 104:20 is the basis of the “Come Holy Spirit” prayer of the Cursillo movement. “Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts o...

Acts 2:1-21 It is a lay lector’s nightmare lesson and even those who wear the collar tread lightly in the linguistic territory of “Phrygia...

John 17:6-19 If you’ve read the other Gospels you might agree that John’s Jesus is less than human or if you won’t go that far at le...

1 John 5:9-13 To have the Son of God means the Son of God has you. Human testimony would have the Son by tradition or dogma or piety witho...

Like a Tree Planted by the River by Donald Simpson Psalm 1 We know the counsel of the wicked is nothing but trouble and linger...

Acts 1:15-26 If the church had continued the practice of casting lots for leaders you can bet it wouldn’t have taken long for someone to l...

John 15:9-17 It is significant that this “status update” from servant to friend occurs in the Gospel of John. After all Jesus’ status was ...

1 John 5:1-6 The way faith conquers the world is not made manifest in the way the world attempts to conquer faith. Despite the apparent mi...

Psalm 98:1-9 A new song of marvelous things means before there was this song there were times less praiseworthy. Singing the rejoicing ref...

Acts 10:44-48 Acts chapter ten begins with God telling Peter that shellfish is now in season and he is free to eat whatever he wants. T...

1 John 4:7-21 “Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.” You would think the church could get this right since the com...

Psalm 22:25-31 Psalm 22 begins not with praise, but lament. “My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?” In the verses that follow human su...

Acts 8:26-40 The Ethiopian eunuch was well respected in the court of Candice but in Jerusalem he was denied access to the temple of the fa...

John 10:11-18 I had a Rambouillet lamb named Louie who grew up to be a sheep so tame as to be a nuisance. I’m not sure the Good Shepherd...