I am stepping away as the regular Wednesday “Lead” Newsblogger effective after today, but I hope to be able to return as a more regular contributor to the Daily Episcopalian, and also to spend more time and energy on writing, some new study projects, and the ongoing work and ministry of being a dad, and a parish priest.
The Covenant certainly cannot exist without the Anglican Communion, but can the Anglican Communion exist without the Covenant? The answer is that it already does. ~ Andrew Gerns
In 1966, John Lennon famously claimed that The Beatles were “more popular than Jesus.” Today that title may belong to Tim Tebow, the Denver Broncos quarterback more famous for praising Jesus than for throwing touchdowns.
The truth is, far too many of these generic plans are a waste of time and energy because they give only lip service to the question of divine guidance.
It may well take a Christmas invitation, followed by an Easter invitation, followed by yet another Christmas invitation before your friends actually show up for church. Never underestimate the inertia that must be overcome to make the move from not attending church to worshipping faithfully. Keep the invitations persistent and low key, always making sure folks know they are welcome, without ever making someone feel bad for not showing up.
Craddock had a problem. He couldn’t bring the thunder. He was short, and his voice was weak. His high school counselor tried to talk him out of becoming a preacher because of his size. And his first church sermon landed with a thud.
Advent’s a time for looking back at the things that had bad outcomes, and asking those same questions we always asked in M and M–“What would I do differently if I had it to do over again?” “How would I do it differently the next time a similar situation happened?” “How aware was I at the time?” “How can I be more aware next time?”
This is now, beloved, the second letter I am writing to you; in them I am trying to arouse your sincere intention by reminding you
I had all the presents back at my apartment, I was halfway through wrapping them, and I realized, “Damn, I used the wrong wrapping paper.” The paper I used said, “Happy Birthday.” I didn’t want to waste it, so I just wrote “Jesus” on it. ~Demetri Martin