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Monthly Archives: December 2017
December 13, 2017
To hate ‘hate’ or to love ‘love’… That is the question by N. Graham Standish A Thought: It’s only as we learn what real love is that we truly recognize hate. And only then do we see how pervasive hate really is, yet even more how powerful love is. We can’t overcome hate by… Read more »
December 13, 2017
Second Week of Advent Turn to God, bind wounds Psalm 147:3 [The Lord] heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds. Hospice care teams are interdisciplinary, consisting of a doctor, a nurse, a social worker and a chaplain. Other resources and therapies are also available, such as respiratory, massage, music and art. Given the number… Read more »
December 12, 2017
Second Week of Advent Hope in God, promote justice Psalm 146:5–7 Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD their God … who executes justice for the oppressed. This Christmas some families will be split apart in the United States, the country that locks up more people,… Read more »
December 11, 2017
Second Week of Advent Imitate God, practice kindness Psalm 145:9 The LORD is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made. Many of us know about the legend of St. Nicholas, the fourth-century bishop who lived in Myra, Asia Minor (now Turkey). He was a kind man who had a… Read more »
December 10, 2017
Second Week of Advent Praise God, give voice Psalm 150:6 Let everything that breathes praise the LORD! Praise the LORD! Concerts are popular during Advent, especially the sing-along Messiah. They are a creative way to praise God and share the story of Christmas through instruments and voices. They allow everyone to contribute their unique sounds…. Read more »
December 9, 2017
First Week of Advent Master addition, skip division Psalm 90:12 So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart. A nurse on my hospice team recently reported that a patient used racial slurs in her presence in reference to another colleague. The nurse was dismayed and tried to reason with… Read more »
December 8, 2017
The Christmas prayer tree A rural church reaches out in an unexpected way by Donna Frischknecht Jackson Silence fell upon the room. A woman at my table waved to the waitress to order another glass of wine. A good diversion on her part, I thought. Others around me glanced down at the meeting agenda,… Read more »
December 8, 2017
First Week of Advent Hear cries, understand groans Psalm 102:19-20 [The Lord] looked down from his holy height … to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set free those who were doomed to die. My work as a hospice chaplain involves time at the bedside of dying patients. Near the transition between life and… Read more »
December 7, 2017
There’s Something About Mary Singing her song in the season of #metoo and #churchtoo by Susan Rothenberg Like most good Presbyterians, I had a weird relationship with Mary as I was growing up. She showed up in Protestant churches for nanosecond during the Advent/Christmas season. I barely noticed her fleeting presence in the nativity scene… Read more »
December 7, 2017
First Week of Advent Don’t throw stones, share the rock Psalm 18:2 The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. My house sits on a corner lot, facing a busy intersection. Years ago we… Read more »
