- Slow and Abundant Faithfulness by Jenny Williams (5/2/2012)
...ve discussions about the purpose of being a called-out people. I was amazed to watch how discussions about formation and Christian practice aided this congregation in their faithfulness, both as individual Christians and as a church engaged with their local community.
We undertook study and conversation by semester, meeting for seven to nine weeks each “term.” The first fall, we studied “The ...
- Leadership Lessons by Jenny Williams (10/20/2011)
...been whiny. Lillian delightfully re-narrated one of the Moses stories and suggested that if he were to be an effective leader he might need to take a course in anger management.<!--more-->
I suppose her humorous take on this “prophet like no other” stuck with me, germinating in the dark recesses of my mind, because as I’ve been preaching the Old Testament lections these past many months, I c...
- Family Ties by Jenny Williams (6/14/2011)
...ight off the bat, “I finally understand what family is all about!” <!--more-->She went on to tell me that a woman in her family, Kelly, just discovered that man she had always known as her father was not indeed her biological father. This discovery completely rocked Kelly’s world. In despair, Kelly asked Shawn in one of their visits, “Will you still be my family member?”
Sally told Kelly th...
- What’s goin’ on? by Jenny Williams (5/4/2011)
...ma bin Laden has dominated discourse over the past week. In the wake of his death, some people are throwing parties, some are ready to break out the duct tape and plastic sheeting, and the rest of us are watching the world go mad. Again.
Jesus asks the two disciples to explain “what things” have been happening in Jerusalem. They get most of it right, and even offer a nice little testimony, but ...
- Valley Girls (and Guys) by Jenny Williams (3/4/2011)
...ey and the one I grew up in (the San Gabriel Valley) could get away for a week to find God and a little fresh air. We hiked among towering pines, sat on rocks to sing songs around a fire, and when we did give in to sleep, did so in log cabins. Lasting relationships were forged for campers, both among themselves and between them and God.<!--more-->
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We’ve all heard (and poss...
- Voice lessons by Jenny Williams (1/6/2011)
...d to observe Christmas, Epiphany, and the Baptism of the Lord as part of one unified and extended celebration. There’s a lot of revelation going on there. Christ’s identity is revealed to shepherds, wise men, John the Baptist, and those gathered on the banks of the Jordan.
The revelation continues on the Sundays after the Epiphany. God appeals to our senses. Whereas Ragan talked about seei...
- Got Conflict? by Jenny Williams (11/11/2010)
...bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_WO3S9XWpzQs/TNvkDuW3MCI/AAAAAAAABEc/4EdBOuU23q0/s1600/164_PreachingToJews.jpg"></a>Tired of congregational conflict?
Recently I had to work with a utility company on behalf of a woman whom our church was assisting financially. The woman was getting nowhere with the company, so I tried to help her with the process. It took eight ...
- Buckle Your Seatbelt by Jenny Williams (9/3/2010)
... leading cause of acquired disability nationwide.
The risks of traveling by automobile are tremendous, and yet most people drive or ride daily. Why would we do such a thing?
We have decided to get in the car because we have more important things to do than live in fear of the road. We have to shop for groceries. We have to take the kids to school. We have to get to work.<!--more-->
In...
- Whose Word is It Anyway? by Jenny Williams (7/11/2010)
...nd she did not know me, she exclaimed, “I thought you would be honored to do it!” Truth be told, I faced the prospect with dread. The maternity issues were only part of my concerns. I knew I would have to speak the truth.
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The Ekklesia Project has spent a lot of time in the past week considering the importance of words. Words matter. Our life begins with a divine Word w...
- In Unity We Lift Our Song by Jenny Williams (4/22/2010)
...urch music. I grew up in a family who valued music and in a church that valued music. Because I was reared in a high steeple church, I was privileged to be exposed at a young age to string ensembles, handbell choirs, professional singers, and <a href="http://www.usc.edu/schools/music/private/faculty/laddthom.php">an organist</a> who is a professor of organ music in a prestigious university music ...
- How Well Do We Let Scripture Claim Us? by Jenny Williams (2/15/2010)
...have good results. If he turns stones into bread, he can feed the hungry people in the whole world. If he gives his allegiance to the devil, the whole world will belong to Jesus in an instant. If he jumps from the temple pinnacle, God will perform a flashy miracle, which could show people who Jesus really is. This interpretation has served me well in the last few years, as I am person who is t...
- A Political Pregnancy (and the Beatles) by Jenny Williams (12/15/2009)
...her than separating them into the Visitation (to be read as the gospel lesson) and the Magnificat (to be read as the Psalter or the Canticle for the day).
In doing so, he contrasts the innocence of the girl who is to give birth to Jesus with the political ramifications of that birth. Taking verses 39-46 and 47-55 together, he says, “gives the preacher abundant material for preaching that critiq...
- I’ve Got the Joy, Joy, Joy, Joy by Jenny Williams (12/9/2009)
...0th century, that day has been recognized by the catholic church as Gaudete, or Joy, Sunday. (<a href="http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06394b.htm">See one history here</a>.) As early as the fifth century, Christians prepared for Christmas with a forty-day fast. The weeks prior to Christmas were a season of penitence, much in the way that Lent functions in relation to Easter. One can see how the...
- A Christian Memorial Day by Jenny Williams (10/27/2009)
...79">Revelation 21:1-6</a>; <a href="http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=123659853">John 11:32-44</a>
Where I live, remembering and honoring the dead is celebrated annually in May. Over Memorial Day weekend, families flock to cemeteries, flowers in hand, to decorate the graves of loved ones who have passed. In many cases out-of-town relatives come in for this ritual. It’s a pretty big deal.
The chu...
- The Kingdom’s Gatekeepers by Jenny Williams (9/2/2009)
...18862529">Proverbs 22:1-2</a>, <a href="http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=118862555">8-9</a>, <a href="http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=118862583">22-23</a>
Ouch. James must have been visiting churches in North America, where in addition to race, the other great divider on Sunday morning is class. He upbraids the congregation for gatekeeping by the way they treat visitors at their worship services. The...