"For he will be handed over to the Gentiles; and he will be mocked and insulted and spat upon. After they have flogged him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise again.” But they understood nothing about these things.” - Luke 18:32-34 Just as we are now nearing the end of our Lenten journey, so in this passage Jesus and disciples were near the end of the journey to Jerusalem, and all that would happen there. Just as our churches are publishing their list o

“So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” - Matthew 6:34 (NRSV) Today’s trouble is enough for today. Jesus, you got that right. You know what the trouble is: a novel coronavirus that has an alarming fraction of the global population ill or dead, and the rest of us hurtling toward lockdown. Are we allowed to worry now? Are we allowed to stock up on canned soup and toilet paper and ice cream? How exa

“You cannot be the servant of two masters! You will like one more than the other or be more loyal to one than the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” - Matthew 6:24 (CEV, adapted) As I write this, we’re a week into our self-quarantine, and the conversation has turned to making tough choices. We have to choose, we’re told, between people staying safe and people getting back to work. Between our friends who are sick and our friends who have been laid off. Between

Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” - Psalm 126:2 During one of the last days of my grandma’s life, I sang to her. I knew each day I spent with her could possibly be our last day together, so each moment was especially tender. In an almost whisper, I sang the words of “Smile” by Tasha Cobbs: Here’s my worship. Take joy in it. Make it your dwelling place. I w

May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy. Those who go out weeping. bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves. - Psalm 126:5-6 In my first memory, I’m in a hospital bed with high bars like a cage. I’m holding onto the railing and I’m crying. There are other cages in the room, but I have the one next to the window so my back is to them, my eyes straining to see out into the night. My mother had pointed to some ligh

By Rachel Hackenberg March 24, 2020 The widow of one of the prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and now creditors come to take my two children as slaves.” Elisha said to her, “Tell me, what do you have in the house?” She answered, “Nothing except a jar of oil.” - 2 Kings 4:1-2 Let’s not pretend with one another that loving God means you will never be broke. Let’s not repeat the lie that you are guaranteed to have plenty so long as you serve God. Beca

The widow of one of the prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and now creditors come to take my two children as slaves.” Elisha said to her, “Tell me, what do you have in the house?” She answered, “Nothing except a jar of oil.” - 2 Kings 4:1-2 Let’s not pretend with one another that loving God means you will never be broke. Let’s not repeat the lie that you are guaranteed to have plenty so long as you serve God. Because I’m not the only person of fai

We do not have a high priest unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Then let us boldly approach the throne of grace to receive mercy. - Hebrews 4:15-16 Jesus may have been sinless, but he’s never expected you to be. So don’t get hung up on that “without sin” part. Pay attention to the “in every respect” part. Jesus was tested by life just as we are, his weaknesses probed, his frailty in play as he s