“Faith > Fear,” My Final Sermon at Northaven

June 25, 2018.Reading time 31 minutes.

Text/Video of my final sermon at Northaven UMC, Dallas.  June 24, 2018  Mark 4: 37-40  “Gale-force winds arose, and waves crashed against the boat so that the boat was swamped. But Jesus was in the rear of the boat, sleeping on a pillow. They woke him up and said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re […]

Burning Myrhh

April 20, 2018.Reading time 7 minutes.

Northaven Friends, I’m burning incense this morning, as I write, journal, and pray here at home. I’m burning Myrrh. Went down the street to Kalachangi’s, here in Old East Dallas, to get some last night. I wanted to burn it today, because of something my therapist reminded me of in our weekly time earlier this […]

For Everything, There Is a Season

April 17, 2018.Reading time 6 minutes.

“For everything, there is a season…” And so it is, friends, I’m announcing today that I will be leaving Northaven UMC as Senior Pastor, and that our Bishop has reappointed me as Pastor of The Woods UMC in Grand Prarie, Texas. This will be effective July 1st. I’m sure that this news will hit some […]

The Night Everything Gets Real

April 13, 2017.Reading time 12 minutes.

I am standing in front of the White House in Washington DC. It’s a warmer-than-average day, and there are 113 other souls, mostly clergy, standing with me. The throngs of ordinary tourists and sightseers have been pushed back to a wide perimeter around us by the Federal police whose job it is to secure the […]

A Small, Beautiful Thing…Why We Marched

April 10, 2017.Reading time 5 minutes.

On the day after #MegaMarch2017 let me tell you another small, beautiful story about what it means to be “Church.” We had great worship, yesterday morning at church. And that was beautiful. Palm Sunday, and all. And then, almost 30 of us marched at the MegaMarch downtown. That was powerful. Big thrill of the day […]

We Did Not Ask For This Room

December 31, 2016.Reading time 17 minutes.

“We did not ask for this room or this music. We were invited in. Therefore, because the dark surrounds us, let us turn our faces to the light. Let us endure hardship to be grateful for plenty. We have been given pain to be astounded by joy. We have been given life to deny death. […]

I Am A Christmas Christian

December 24, 2016.Reading time 22 minutes.

(Warning: This post contains adult language) I am a Christmas Christian. I’ve known this for decades now. But only now do I feel brave enough to say it boldly. Because, in many Christian circles, it’s almost like heresy to not say “I’m an Easter Christian.” I’m one of those too. I love Easter. I come […]

The Story at the Door

December 23, 2016.Reading time 10 minutes.

Sometimes the whole story of our faith, our culture, and this great political divide between us all is made manifest in small moments that speak to you…small moments that tell big stories. That happened to me as I stood at the door after worship on Sunday. One of the very first couples of shake my […]

Sermon In Response to the Dallas Shootings

July 10, 2016.Reading time 23 minutes.

This is different, isn’t it? We’ve been here before. We’ve been in church, the Sunday after some mass shooting…somewhere…and we’ve viscerally felt the horror and the shock. You’ve heard me preach on those Sundays. But this is so different. This is our home. Our city. Violence toward our police. In our downtown, where some of […]

Signs That Are More Than Ink On Paper

June 16, 2016.Reading time 25 minutes.

When I was a kid, there was a program called “Helping Hands” that was supposed to help kids feel safe. The idea was that families would put a paper sign inside the front windows of their house. The sign was a very simple hand print. The theory was that if a kid was ever walking […]