fourth Sunday in Advent (2020)
contemplating collects
. . .STIR up, O Lord, we beseech Thee, Thy power, and come, and with great might succor us, that by the help of Thy grace whatsoever is hindered by our sins may be speedily accomplished, through Thy mercy and satisfaction; Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
why I don't stand when veterans are recognized
some thoughts on vocation
This post will make some of you upset. It's okay. Despite how most of our society handles itself online, we're able to disagree about things.
Last week, my family and I were at two separate events where veterans were asked to stand and be recognized. Neither of these events was associated with the military or any . . .
third Sunday in Advent (2020)
contemplating collects
LORD, we beseech Thee, give ear to our prayers, and lighten the darkness of our hearts, by Thy gracious visitation; Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
-- Common Service Book of the Lutheran Church
And when John had heard in prison about the . . .
second Sunday in Advent (2020)
contemplating collects
STIR up our hearts, O Lord, to make ready the way of Thine Only-Begotten Son, so that by His coming we may be enabled to serve Thee with pure minds; Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
--Common Service Book of the Lutheran Church
"And there . . .
first Sunday in Advent (2020)
contemplating collects
STIR up, we beseech Thee, Thy power, O Lord, and come; that by Thy protection we may be rescued from the threatening perils of our sins, and saved by Thy mighty deliverance; Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
--Common Service Book of the Lutheran . . .
Lincoln's Thanksgiving proclamation (1863)
In 1863, to a nation deeply divided along cultural and political lines, to a country wracked by hundreds of thousands of casualties from an endless civil war, to a people who must've wondered if their beloved United States was on the very brink of collapse, Abraham Lincoln called the American public to a day of thanksgiving and . . .
'only-begotten' vs 'one-and-only': a pastoral perspective and plea
Since Dale Moody's 1953 article in the Journal of Biblical Literature, the consensus of modern New Testament scholars through the remainder of the 20th century was that the Greek word monogenes should not be translated and understood in the traditional way as 'only-begotten' (as the KJV, NKJV, NASB, and EHV translate it) . . .
