The title of my sermon today is “Mary and Martha” but I could have easily called it “Night and Day” because Mary and Martha were as different as night and day. Let’s take a look at these two women … who, very likely, were among Jesus’ closest friends … and see what they have to teach us about our lives. … Read full sermon here (PDF).
]]>In 1898, a Chicago columnist named Finley Peter Dunne coined a phrase about the role of the newspaper in his society, the age of muckraking journalism. The paper, he said, “comforts th’afflicted and afflicts th’ comfortable.” Throughout the century that followed, a number of astute religious leaders have picked up the phrase to describe what should be the aim of religion in society. “To comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable.” … Read full sermon here (PDF).
Most of you can remember Art Linkletter and his TV segment, Kids Say the Darndest Things? Once they were questioned about what they liked about the United States. Here are some of their answers: … Read full sermon here (PDF).
]]>Let me begin by confessing that I once lost my sole on the golf course. Fortunately, my shoe manufacturer gave me a full refund. … Read full sermon here (PDF).
]]>Father’s Day
Ann Snow sent me a Prayer for Fathers and when I read it, well, I thought of my dad. I want to share it with you:
Mender of toys, leader of boys, changer of fuses, kisser of bruises. Bless him, dear Lord.
Mover of couches, soother of ouches, pounder of nails, teller of tales. Reward him, O Lord.
Hanger of screens, counselor of teens, fixer of bikes, chastiser of tykes. Help him, O Lord.
Raker of leaves, cleaner of eaves, dryer of dishes, fulfiller of wishes. Bless him, O Lord. … Read full sermon here (PDF).
]]>Think about this question: How do you live the Christian life? Well, believe it or not, the answer is … You don’t! Over one billion people have become Christians in the last 2,000 years. But only One Person has ever lived the Christian life … and you know who that is. I am going to make an outlandish statement … but I believe it to be true: The average Christian knows far more about how to BECOME one than how to BE one. … Read full sermon here (PDF).
]]>My home church in St. Clairsville, Ohio, Calvary Presbyterian Church, is celebrating 180 years as a community of faith, and they have invited me to preach this summer … what a privilege that will be. I’ll be sharing stories of my life growing up in that wonderful congregation and how they were influential in my decision to become a minister. One of the stories I will share with them is about Mary Reid Wilson, my 6th grade Sunday School teacher (who just happened to be the principal at the elementary school in St. C.). Back many years ago, we had visited while on vacation one summer, and I preached for them while there. After the sermon, Mrs. Wilson (I never dared address her as anything else!) Mrs. Wilson came up to me (she was in her mid-eighties at that time) and she said, “Terry, you’re the first preacher I’ve heard preach about sin who I KNOW understands what he’s preaching about.” Mary Reid Wilson knew me well. I guess I could have responded: “You have heard, no doubt, of my earlier life…” … Read full sermon here (PDF).
]]>I heard about a young man who left for college. Apparently his mother had packed his suitcases, so when he started to put his clothes away in his new dorm room he discovered two long, narrow pieces of cloth among the shirts, socks and underwear. These two pieces of cloth were neatly folded and ironed. At first the young man didn’t know what they were, but when he looked at the design of the cloth, he soon recognized the pattern … these were the strings from his mother’s favorite apron. She had cut them off for him…. Read full sermon here (PDF).
]]>Teachers are tired this time of year. Ok, maybe, I think, teachers are tired all year except summer and winter break. They work hard and have to find ways to explain things THEY already know. Kids can be horrible and parents can be, well…everything from aggressively overbearing and entitled to depressingly absent and uninvolved. Teachers work hard. But, from what I hear, there is one major thing that makes it all worth it. Light Bulbs … Read full sermon here (PDF).
]]>It’s hard to read this passage from John’s gospel without feeling a bit guilty. After all, it’s a very intimate moment between Jesus and his heavenly Father, as Jesus prays. Jesus knows, of course, that he is about to die on a Roman cross. That is the backdrop to all that he says and does in these his final moments prior to his arrest and conviction. And, it is what Jesus ironically refers to in his prayer as his “glory.” His “glory.” Imagine. Jesus is about to give up his life, and he calls it his “glory.” … Read full sermon here (PDF).
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