We had 13 months between the engagement and the wedding of our daughter. We knew this big event was going to take a lot of planning. Having her live overseas and the wedding taking place here in Colorado would also mean that there were special plans that might take extra time. It wasn't until well after the date was set along with the locations of a special pre-wedding event and the reception, the caterer, the flowers were all sorted out that it occurred to me I needed to fi

Zoey and Tobi in 2025 Sunday October 4 is the day designated to remember and give thanks for St Francis of Assisi. He was known There is a story that St. Francis of Assisi wrote out this blessing from Numbers for his dear friend Leo who was struggling. Leo would go on to carry around the piece of parchment that contained that blessing for more than forty years. Blessings matter. Words matter. We matter and how we show up in the world matters. As we remember the gifts of St

As part of our Grateful Gatherings curriculum we learned about the practice of Stop, Look, Go. Here is a link on grateful.org to hear about this practice. This week I encourage you to consider incorporating this gratitude practice. As we reflected on the gospel reading Matthew 21:23-32 (this is the Message translation) in our early morning bible study, I was reminded of how powerful it is to pause, to look and to listen. As we listened and reflected together on this scriptur

The last shall be first Matthew 20:16 Beginning at the end. It was time, a few days ago, for me to start a new journal. I use composition books as journals. Whenever I begin a new journal I start at the back. The last pages are the ones I write on first. At the top of one of the last pages I write “gratitude”. On the top of another I write "God box”. Throughout the two or three months, I'll be writing daily reflections in this journal I will turn to the back pages to write o

The past week of continuing education helped fill my cup. A friend shared with me a drink mix she likes that is called daily Joy. There's another one I drink and it's called Calm. Now these are not advertisements for any sort of drink drinks or supplements just a little insight into what this past week off allowed for me as I practiced the pause. Now here I will put a plug in for this book entitled practicing the pause. It was handed to me after I returned from sabbatical, an

At camp we learned that one posture for prayer is with our hands open This Summer at Rainbow Trail Lutheran Camp we learned about prayer. Each person was sent home with a wristband printed with Philippians 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. We had the opportu

When wondering what to do next? Seeking G.O.D. So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Romans 12:1 in The Message Translation I don't know how many times I have said, "I just wish someone would tell me what to do.” I don't know how many times I have sat across from someone else who has voiced those same words. Perhaps Paul wrote the

What is faith? Each of us will answer this question in our own particular way. This summer, we have been focusing on: deepening our relationships with God, our relationships with one another, and our relationships with ourselves. I invite you to explore your own answer to this question; what is faith for you? Here are some answers that might be given. Within this list are some of my answers. Within this list are some seeds for my sermon this Sunday. Trust. Belief. Elusive

This Sunday our Vacation Bible School (VBS) children will be singing in church. It fills my heart to get to spend time with them as they learn songs, bible stories, enjoy art projects and sit on blankets to share a meal. We get to play games, make friends, and expand our hearts a little more each day to let in the love that is shared by the caring adults and youth who volunteer. When the disciples were afraid and overwhelmed out at sea -in a boat battered by waves when Jesu

This Sunday we get to hear about the feeding of the 5000 as told in Mathew's gospel. A familiar miracle story which I invite you to consider looking at it from a place of not only is there enough, often there is more than enough. A scarcity mindset is easy to have. There is not enough time, not enough money, not enough help, not enough of whatever. It can be a default to live with a sense of scarcity and a feeling we need to hold onto whatever we have for fear of not having

It takes me right back to elementary school. I remember how excited I would be when it was my turn for a show and tell. This summer we are inviting people during worship to participate in show and tell during worship. Do you want a turn? It's arranged ahead of time (click on the link above to send an email to sign up)to allow enough time for sharing about a hobby, interest or passion. This aligns with the focus this summer to deepen our relationship with God, our ourself and

Throughout the 50 days of Easter, I would like to invite you to explore what it means for you to have an open heart and an open mind. We are using a theme verse from Acts 17:28; in him we live and move and have our being. On this Sunday, April 19 in our gospel reading we hear the story of Jesus walking along side two of his followers, one named Cleopas. Jesus meets them along the way. At the beginning of our reading for this Sunday April 19 in Luke 24:16 , we read that th

During the season of Lent as we have been exploring the Love Languages of Lent, I have been curious about a soundtrack that might accompany us. I didn't come up with one as such. Yet this week as we read together the gospel for this coming Sunday March 22, 2026 John 11:1-45- ( Lazarus being raised from the dead) the four songs at the bottom of this post came to mind. I am attaching the music videos from YouTube for each of them. There will likely be an advertisement at begin

Take 5- a candy bar, a break, a safety term, a boy band, and a strategy for teaching self-regulation to name just five items that come up with a search of that phrase. This year I hope you will consider taking 5 weeks to explore living from a place of deep love. I hope you will accept this invitation to engage in deepening your love and connection with God, within yourself and with other people. Will you take the less than 5 minutes it takes to read this? This Lenten season

In the pause, in the gap, in the in-between, in the uncertain, in the unknown, in the light and in the darkness what does it mean to wait? This week the second Sunday in the season of Epiphany the assigned psalm is Psalm 40. Every time I hear the reference to psalm 40 it takes me back to 1987. That year we waited. We waited mostly patiently. We waited in line overnight in the dark and the next day in the light. In those days the only way to get concert tickets was in person

When you hear something alarming what is your response? When we are alarmed it can be hard to pause and to ponder. As together we hear some challenging words I hope you can find some breathing room, some space for curiosity. This Sunday is the last of us reading through Luke’s gospel in lectionary year C. It has some words that might sound frightening. I appreciate Eugene Peterson’s translation in The Message of Luke 21:5-19 . Click on that link to read it. He entitles this

It was almost twenty years ago that this sermon was preached. My husband was a manuscript writing preacher. In this post I am sharing with you the gift of the words he wrote and then preached five days before his unexpected death. On November 11, 2025 it will be twenty years since he died. To remember is holy and can be part of our healing. May some of these words speak to your own remembering on this All Saints Sunday. “What’s A Saint?” A sermon by Pastor Steve Cox (1957

There we were in the Houston Astrodome. There were thousands of us. After all the months of planning and preparing for the 2018 ELCA Youth Gathering we were now at the closing worship getting ready to get back on the bus for a 18 hour ride back home. It was amazing and breath taking. I was filled with overwhelming gratitude. We had joined together with three other churches to form a group of 30 youth plus adults for a milestone adventure. The planning and logistics were a lot

Kintsugi- is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold, silver or platinum Include the broken pieces. This was part of the...

What then shall we say about this? One of favorite church historians/theologians is Diana Butler Bass. She commented that this is a...