It was getting on towards 6 pm. I was walking down the main street of this Zapotec Mexican town, looking for the turquoise store that sells roasted chickens.I smelled incense. I've smelled a lot of things here, but this was new. There on my left, in front of the pharmacy, was a small table ... Continue reading
Celebrating greatness
February 5, 2007 By
In the morning, we celebrated communion, drinking grape juice and eating crackers in remembrance of Jesus' blood and body. We "celebrate," but in the older sense of the word. It's a time of solemnity where we recall our sin and seek the forgiveness of the One whose death was caused by our sin.We ... Continue reading
Comfort
January 28, 2007 By 1 Comment
God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted. — Matthew 5:4, NLT (Jesus speaking)She awoke around midnight and went into her 5-week-old son's bedroom to nurse him. The moment she touched his head, she knew something was wrong. His skin was cold. He wasn't breathing.She screamed, ... Continue reading
Humble
January 26, 2007 By Leave a Comment
God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth. — Matthew 5:5, NLT (Jesus speaking) Maybe you're puzzled like I am. You're in your Lazy-boy watching Hollywood's rich and famous gathered for yet another love fest. The announcer calls out the name of some budding young ... Continue reading
Poor in spirit
January 23, 2007 By 10 Comments
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. — Matthew 5:3, NLT (Jesus speaking) This was Jesus' first recorded statement in what is known as his Sermon on the Mount. I have a feeling it left his audience a bit puzzled.Poor in spirit. What does it mean?You could ... Continue reading
Redeeming our history
January 9, 2007 By Leave a Comment
My grandfather Lehardy was an illegal immigrant. Louis was a French seaman working on a British freighter that sailed to ports in the Far East. On a trip from Hong Kong to the port of Baltimore in 1907, perhaps hauling a cargo of spices for the McCormick Company, Louis got off the ship and never ... Continue reading
RoboChrist
January 2, 2007 By
Christianity is nothing more than one of many interpretations of reality, neither more nor less. Ideally, it would be nice to believe that there is a God somewhere out there, but it looks to me as if the whole Christian religion is a major symptom of schizophrenia in half the world's population: ... Continue reading
Christmas encounters, Part 4
December 22, 2006 By 2 Comments
Recitative for soprano: "There were shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night."Andante: "And lo! The angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone around about them, and they were sore afraid.""And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for ... Continue reading
