Of audio cassettes, powdered milk and touch screens

 

August 28, 2022

Was your childhood filled with audio cassettes, powdered milk or touch screens? 

Turns out the times are always changing!  And its not just technology, its every facet of our lives:  the broader culture, the relationships and even our bodies.

We discover a need for something constant, something upon which we can build our lives.

A reflection on how Christ promises to be the cornerstone on which we can build, the one who is the same yesterday, today and forever.

The photo is from a Forbes Magazine article on a revival of interest in audio cassettes.

Healing and Sabbath

 

August 21, 2022

Jesus heals a woman.  The healing he brings is on many levels: physical, emotional, spiritual, relational and communal.

Jesus wants to bring us this healing.  

Jesus brings this healing on the sabbath.  

And that is the rub.  We live in a culture that no longer has any sabbath.  So what might it look like to practice sabbath in our culture today, to allow for Jesus to heal us?  A start of a conversation.

This image came from an Episcopal Church website.  I did some more research and I see it is by an artist named Barbara Schwarz.

Cloud of Witnesses

 

August 14, 2022

Are those who have died still with us?  Can they still speak to us?  How thin is the veil between heaven and earth?

Pastor Rob ponders some of the mysteries surrounding the “Cloud of Witnesses,” those who have gone before us in faith.

Do not worry!

 

August 7, 2022

Jesus today tells us not to worry, assuring us of God’s provision.  This is a reminder than even 2,000 years ago humans had worries!

Yet, these days, we seem to have a such a high base level of anxiety.  Why?  There are many reasons, but Pastor Rob reflects on the impact of media and social media on our lives and hearts.  The media (in all its forms), seduces us into anger, fear, jealousy, lust and gluttony, leaving us with haunting questions like: “At whom should I be angry today?”

As we seek to follow Christ and hear his word, he transforms our question into the far better one: “Who are my neighbors and how can I serve them?”  

The image (from a sewing website!) points to the story that Pastor Rob ends with, in which one Christian choses, in a chaotic world, to help their neighbor by sewing clothing.

Life is not the abundance of things

 July 31, 2022

“Life does not consist in the abundance of things.”  With these words, Jesus offers us wisdom we know is true.  Yet in this word of things and possessions, it is easy for us to lose our way.  What brings you and us back to realizing what is truly important?  Ultimately, Jesus words today challenge us to consider – what is the good life?  What is the abundant life?

The picture is of the former Trinity Church in Dresden.  Carpet bombed in World War II, this church has finally been restored to a church and community center for youth.  Pastor Rob reflects on his time in this church and how this church is an example of the abundant and beautiful life.