The Church Mouse

“Hope is a star that shines in the night” (VU 7, Written by Brian Wren, music by Joan Collier Fogg) “Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.””(Genesis 15:5) “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, [a]wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East … Read more

In the weeds : idiomatic.  Immersed or entangled in details or complexities. (Wiktionary the Free Dictionary) Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. (1 Thessalonians 5:11) And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,  (Hebrews 10: 24) “I want you, right now, to take a deep breath and let it out slowly.  Do again and again until you can release this to God” (My cousin, Emily Crighton) This morning I got a text from one of my colleagues telling me that she was having a tough … Read more

25“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; 4but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. 6But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. 8The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of … Read more

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8: 31, 32) Last weekend I attended a “Live at the Met” event at our local theatre.  This is a livestreamed production put on by the Metropolitan Opera, and the opera I saw was “Dead Man Walking”.  I love these productions.  For a while I thought about titling our streamed worship on Sunday morning a “Live at Bethel Event”.  But, considering there were only 5 of … Read more

“The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” — Frederick Buechner   Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.  – Psalm 37:4   This morning when I was on social media catching up on what news I could find, I was given (sent?  What is it called when the internet gremlins just make a decision on what you should read?) a link to the Public Service Jobs website to apply for a job in “Security” for CSIS.    A SPY!!! How … Read more

11 On the way to Jerusalem Jesus[a] was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he entered a village, ten men with a skin disease approached him. Keeping their distance, 13 they called out, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14 When he saw them, he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were made clean. 15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. 16 He prostrated himself at Jesus’s[b] feet and thanked him. And he … Read more

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. (John 10:10) During the integrity versus despair stage, people reflect back on the life they have lived and come away with either a sense of fulfillment from a life well lived or a sense of regret and despair over a life misspent.  (Erickson’s Stages of Development – the Aging Adult). For the past month or so I’ve done a whole lot of funerals.  Its very sacred work and I’m always so honored to walk with families at this time … Read more

Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people who eat of it. Ezekiel 12: 3,4 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.  (Psalm 23:5) Sometimes you have to be the first to walk across the … Read more

For the beauty of the earth, For the glory of the skies, For the Love which from our birth, Over and around us lies. Christ our Lord to you we raise, This our hymn of grateful praise.  (Folliet Sandford Pierpont, 1864)   Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. … Read more